Context

• Russia declared a state of emergency, five days after a power plant fuel leak in its Arctic region caused 20,000 tonnes of diesel oil to escape into a local river, turning its surface crimson red.

Facts to remember

• The Ambarnaya river, into which the oil has been discharged, is part of a network that flows into the environmentally sensitive Arctic Ocean.
• Ambarnaya is a river in Siberia which flows in a northerly direction into Lake Pyasino. On leaving Lake Pyasino, the waters emerge as the Pyasina river.
• It is heavily polluted by the mining industry of Norilsk and so fishing is no longer possible.
• The power plant is located near the Region’s Norilsk city